Employee Spotlight – Bill Zeiter
Bill Zeiter is the plant manager at Swanton Welding and Machining Company (SWC) in Wauseon, Ohio. Having served in many different capacities throughout his time at the company and not only understands how it operates but also has the skills needed to manage and uphold high quality management strategies. To Bill, Santon Welding is more than a mere company. It is his family, his passion and his dedication.
Bill’s first visit to the company as a young man made him believe that welding and fabrication was not a career he especially wanted to pursue. Things changed when he started working for us as a full time employee during his high school summer holidays. 21 years later he is still taking a very active role in Swanton Welding. A lot has changed for the better here ever since Bill’s first visit, largely due to his insightful leadership.
Thorough, Hardworking, and Determined
Bill has always been thorough in his work. He believes that all customer-oriented businesses should prioritize customer satisfaction above all else, and our clients have benefited tremendously as a result. He shares in Norm’s opinion that it is not easy to teach welding and fabrication techniques but, with attention to detail and patience, one can train employees to do practically anything – and do it well. To Bill, most advanced skills can be learned, if you are determined, hardworking and willing to be educated.
This approach allows him to hire employees not just based on experience but also attitude and character. While competing firms have veteran employees who perform their jobs functionally but without imagination, many of the workers at at Swanton Welding are young, energetic, experienced and customer-focused. He treats his employees well, which makes them care for the company and want to be part of it. The result is consistent work in a stable environment.
Changes in the industry have pushed Swanton Welding to step up over the last decade. The need to meet tighter deadlines and overcome stiff competition has molded the company into an efficient service provider. Bill’s leadership induces a sense of belonging that has played an integral role in growing the company. With the company handling structural tasks in Swanton, larger projects in Wauseon and production in Georgia, there is plenty of variety to go around. Over time his employees develop strategies and routines that drive their work, and therefore the company they represent as well. Despite obvious success, the company works harder than many other competitors, which is always surprising to new employees. No competitor in the area can match its capacity and capabilities.
Bill and company are not selective in the tasks they handle. Whether it’s a quick job or an extremely involved project you can expect your assignment to be handled without discrimination. He works everyday to make sure his team is made up of employees with the right attitude, experience and work ethic. Of course it’s difficult to manage a team without personal experience to build from, and he has personally worked on a range of projects himself, ranging from roller coaster fabrication to creating a carbon fiber furnace, natural gas exhaust stacks, conveyor structure and an automated parking garage. Bill is aware of the challenges that Swanton Welding’s customers are dealing with right now, the most common being schedules and timelines. Other challenges include competition; planning difficulties and specialized fabrication skill training. He works everyday to make sure Swanton Welding is able to meet the needs of its clients, whatever they might be.
While he is not at Swanton Welding he likes to spend time with family. He also enjoys sports including baseball, basketball and football. We thank Bill for his years of tireless service and hope that he remains at Swanton Welding for a very long time to come.
